Street: Anthony Sinsay

Growing up in a Filipino family in San Diego, Anthony Sinsay took to food early on. While his friends read comic books, played football and watched sitcoms, Sinsay read cookbooks, practiced his souffles and watched the Food Network. After receiving his culinary degree at the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena, Sinsay eventually landed at the famed Las Vegas Nobu. After five years, he returned to California to work with chef Warren Schwartz at the Viceroy hotel in Santa Monica. He then worked with the man who is often credited with bringing Spanish small-plate cuisine across the Atlantic, Jose Andres, at the SLS Hotel in Los Angeles.

After studying under the accomplished chef and working in successful restaurants, Sinsay was finally given the opportunity to return home and run his own kitchen at Miso Harney Sushi, which has locations in Old Town and Oceanside. Since June, he has been working hard to add his touches to the menu while maintaining the things that Harney's current customers expect.

Name: Anthony Sinsay

Age: 26

How did you get started in cooking at such an early age?

My dad was the cook in the house, and he passed when I was 11. My mom is one of the worst cooks I've seen use a saute pan. So, I took over the cooking duties in-house and I took a liking to it.

Was it tough to be a high school kid who liked cooking more than sports?

I went to Southwest High, which was a rough place. I wouldn't say it was hard, but most of the kids were into gangs, playing ball or some other extracurricular activity – I went my own way for sure. Thomas Keller (chef-owner of Napa's French Laundry) was an idol of mine. My friends looked up to Dr. Dre and Tupac, and I was looking up to superstars in the cooking world. But I loved what I was doing so it didn't matter.

While you worked at Nobu in Las Vegas did you get at all involved with Sin City life?

Of course I got involved. In Vegas, you work hard so you play hard. I mostly play Texas hold 'em poker. I really fell in love with it – I still have pickup games with friends and go to Indian reservation casinos. The thing is, the pickup games out here aren't quite the same level. I'm coming from Vegas where they are hardcore players.

What food memories do you have from your childhood in San Diego?

Well, I grew up in a Filipino household. So, we ate lumpia (spring rolls) and pancit (stir fried noodles) and kare-kare, a Filipino peanut and oxtail stew, a Filipino confit if you will. It influenced me. Filipino cuisine has great comfort foods.

We didn't have a lot of money growing up so we didn't go out to eat much, so a lot of my outside food experiences were at fairs and getting snack foods. I'm a fat kid at heart, that's why you see pretzels on my menu.

Where can you get good Filipino food in San Diego?

Tita's Kitchenette in National City is one of my favorite places; it is a true Filipino restaurant.

What have been some of the challenges of being an executive chef for the first time?

The challenging part has been acclimating to the culture that is already here. This is a pretty well-established restaurant. San Diego is familiar with Harney, so the challenge is to keep what people like and expect while incorporating new flavors and mixing in what I bring.

I think it has been a perfect mix though. The owners, Dustin (Summerville) and Kirk (Harrison), had the audacity to open a sushi joint in the middle of Old Town. That takes guts when all the competing spots are Mexican. Their attitude and ambition matches my personality and style of food. I like to be daring.

You've introduced some new dishes to the menu. Which are you the most pleased with?

One of the biggest successes so far is the virtually smoked hamache (yellowtail). We actually smoke the hamache on the way to the table, but there's no smoker. We burn wood chips and then snuff them out with a wine glass. We put the smoke-filled glass over the fish and the smoke permeates the fish on the way to the table. Also, we are doing a sous vide chicken teriyaki that comes out perfect.

Do you feel San Diego is ready for some of the new techniques in gourmet cooking that have risen from molecular gastronomy?

Not yet. I've done a slow progression with this menu so far. Right now, I'm focused on making the menu more market-driven. I'm buying everything locally – I didn't want to come in here and use a lot of fancy techniques with no direction.

So, I haven't gotten out the liquid nitrogen yet. We have some foams, airs, aromas and a few other things we are introducing in a slow progression.

As someone who grew up here and has worked with celebrity chefs elsewhere, what is your assessment of the San Diego food scene?

The whole movement behind it needs to be approached differently. In L.A., New York or Chicago, they have restaurants that are able to showcase the technique. Here, especially in California, we have the best produce I think in the world. We have the freshest fish, and we can get perfect produce.

The key is to not showcase technique on the plate, but to showcase the product and incorporate technique into it. You have to bridge the gap between uber modern and market-driven cuisine – a compromise to make that food more approachable.